Handling
by Dancingqueen4Life
Summary: Maria gets a letter that tells her a few things she needs to know in order to be Clint and Natasha's handler. Number 6 in my one-shot week. Please read and review.


A month after the New York incident, Maria Hill was handed an envelope. It was plain, with only her name scrawled on the front. But she knew the handwriting almost better than her own.

She quickly made her way to her office and read through the letter quickly. When she was done, she called Natasha and Clint into her office. When they arrived she had them sit down and she began reading the letter aloud to them.

_Maria-  
I really hope you never read this letter, because if you're reading it, then it means I'm not coming back.  
As soon as I met you, I liked you. You're tough, smart, and you don't care what people think about you, as long as they respect you. Years ago, I went to Fury and asked him to promise that if anything ever happened to me, you'd become Natasha and Clint's handler. I knew that while you all would miss me, they'd know you well enough, and hopefully trust you enough, to listen to you when they're on missions. Fury agreed, for which I am very grateful._

_I thought it would be nice of me to leave you some tips on being their handler, just to make it easier to deal with them:  
First- They get hurt a lot, get used to it. But don't ever expect them to stay in medical for more than 30 minutes, unless one of them is in a coma. It won't happen, and they're better at patching each other up anyways._

_Second- Natasha is prone to panic attacks when something reminds her of the Red Room. Don't even try to help her; it'll end with you in medical. When it happens, find Clint; he can calm her down in a few minutes. If he's on a mission, try calling him. If he doesn't answer, the only other thing that will work is to lock her in a room and let her sort it out by herself._

_Third- When Clint has nightmares, he'll go to the shooting range and shoot arrows until he falls asleep standing up, and he'll still keep shooting. There's really nothing you can do, at least nothing I've found. Just make sure that there are always a few quivers full of arrows for him._

_Fourth- Just because they're assassins doesn't mean they don't need to have fun. Their main form of decompression usually involves pranks around base. Don't try to stop it, just let them have their fun. The base might need cleaning afterward, but you'll have non-stressed assassins, and that's far more important than a clean base._

_Fifth- Sending Natasha to Russia is a bad idea in general. Only bad things happen there, and having Clint with her doesn't make them any better. So avoid it like the plague. Even if you have to bribe or blackmail other agents into going, it's worth it to keep her out. She'll tell you why eventually._

_Sixth- This is perhaps the most important one. The first time you read this, they will likely be gone. Don't worry. They're in Washington with my mom, spending time with their twins, Kira and Luka. You'll get to meet them eventually, they're really the sweetest kids I've ever met. After every mission, make sure they have a week to spend with their kids, no matter what. After you meet them, I'm sure you'll try to get them even longer off. Don't. Any more than a week with their kids between missions makes them not want to go back. And then they get bored, and bored assassins are just as bad as stressed assassins._

Maria finished reading the letter and looked at the assassins and children in question. Phil was right, Kira and Luka were adorable. Kira had bright red, straight, hair that just brushed her shoulders, and blue-gray eyes. Luka had sandy blonde hair that was done in spikes just like Clint's, and his bright green eyes matched Natasha's perfectly.

"Mama, does this mean Uncle Phil's never coming home?" Kira asked, eyes brimming with tears.  
"He's not coming home Kira, but he'll always be with us. Remember?" Luka said before their parents could answer. Kira nodded and gave her twin a hug from her position on Clint's lap. Natasha pulled Luka onto her lap and hugged him close, tears slipping from her eyes. Clint hugged Kira tighter to his chest and buried his face in her hair, refusing to let anyone see the tears falling.

After a few moments, Natasha and Clint had managed to pull themselves together enough to leave with their family. They still had a month's leave left, and intended to visit one of their safe houses.

"Thank you, Maria." Natasha said as she closed the door."  
"You're welcome." Maria whispered, a second too late.

She reread the letter once more before deciding to leave for the day.

* * *

**There's number 6! Hope you guys liked it.  
Reviews are wonderful. You should write one. :)**


End file.
